mastering the ancient art of being a kid

men!

the other day, i met a new guy and as i talked, he was sitting there with the most beatific smile, hanging on my every word as if i were the most beautiful and scintillating woman on earth. and all i kept thinking was “awwwwwww…isn’t that cute?” the guy was five years old. well…almost five.

he was joining one of my mini yogis classes that day with one of his friends and we all had a few minutes to bond over finger food before class started. this boy was absolutely entranced with me. he laughed at all my jokes, answered all my questions, and i thought, “phew! i’ve got this kid wrapped around my little finger. he’s going to be a great listener in yoga.”

if only it were that simple!

when we rolled out the mats, my five-year-old admirer suddenly became that obnoxious guy at the bar who tries to get your attention by being arrogantly aloof, defiant and smugly smiley…showing off for the other kids how cool he really is. cool guys don’t listen to teachers. and they never allow themselves to be wrapped around some broad’s finger.

how did this precious little peanut become such a pint-sized recalcitrant nightmare? ultimately, it was probably my fault. when you are too jokey or chummy with a child before class, all they want to do with you is joke and play. you can’t just go from shana-clown to shana-yoga-teacher…no matter how fun you make the class. it’s like a bait-and-switch.

as with all men, there is a fine balance between getting the little guys to fall under your spell, but also always reminding them who’s really boss.

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About miniyogis

the day before i found yoga--had you asked me--i'd have told you that i wouldn't be caught dead doing yoga. sitting around and humming? not my idea of a good time.
a minute into my first yoga class--had you asked me--i'd have told you i will practice until the minute i die. and i've been in heaven ever since.
more than anything, yoga taught me that it was okay to be imperfect, okay to fall. and, man, do i wish someone told me that when i was 3 instead of 30.
so i started mini yogis yoga for kids, hoping to help children to be more accepting of themselves, more accepting of others, and better human beings overall.
that was march 2002.
since then, i've taught tens of thousands of children how to use yoga as a tool for daily life. and i've also taught about 1000 teachers around the world to date (12/11) how to teach yoga to kids. i figure between the children i've taught and the ones my grads have taught, we've likely reached hundreds of thousands of kids.
just looking to make a difference in this world....